Klarinet Archive - Posting 000777.txt from 1998/04

From: Kenneth Wolman <kwolman@-----.com>
Subj: Re: Local independent music stores
Date: Wed, 15 Apr 1998 16:47:30 -0400

At 03:12 PM 4/15/98 -0400, you wrote:
>In Baltimore we have quite a few local music stores. With one exception,
>they are all in it for the fast buck. They constantly sell students stuff
>they don't need, refuse to carry music and accessories that I, as a
>private teacher - not
>a band instructor, request (because they can only sell one or two instead
>of 100), staff their stores with extremely uninformed 'dweebs' who get
>instructions wrong and insist that what they have is better anyway,
>take weeks to replace a pad, charge full list price for student
>instruments which they sell tons of, etc...

That is another aspect of the problem and I imagine it applies to people
who are not in "music district" neighborhoods in large cities. I've called
local stores in Jersey--not the chains like Sam Ash--and when I ask about
Pomarico crystal mouthpieces, they either have never heard of them ("Poma
who?") or tell me it's a special order item and they stock low-end stuff
for kids just starting to play ANY instrument (Tonettes, anyone?). I can
only imagine walking into the local music store near my apartment and
telling them the owner want to buy a LeBlanc Opus and Buffet Prestige, then
dialing 911 so the EMS guys can revive the salesman after he faints....

Ken

Kenneth Wolman Information Technology Morgan Stanley Inc.
750 Seventh Avenue New York, NY 212-762-1685
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